Sequel to : A night to remember
by Winter's angel
Summary: The title speaks for itself...I suggest you read A Night to Remember first. It's another Quall romance, but the two are separated...and something nasty happens to Quistis.


Sequel to: A night to remember

Sequel to: A night to remember

By Silver Dolphin

__

Yes, I know, legal rubbish first…I don't own…blah. You get the idea.

Oh, great. Does life get any worse than this? Quistis wondered as she sat opposite Cid in his third-floor office.

"So what you're saying is, I have to add Squall's duties of my own?" she asked incredulously. "I thought you were going to release me from my instructor's duties!"

"That's what I wanted, but we're currently short of teaching staff right now. And I daresay the students will miss you very much."

__

Flattery will get you everywhere. She crossed her arms and gave him a flat look. "Headmaster, I may not be able to cope with the work load. Squall himself had more than he could handle when he was commander."

"You are one of the most outstanding SeeDs Garden has ever seen, Quistis. As for the work load, I'll assign someone to help you."

__

Great Hyne, the man is really an expert at pushing duties around. But she couldn't refuse. Her oath as a SeeD bound her to whatever duties that were assigned to her. 

"If that's all Headmaster, I've got my classes to attend to." She stood up, inwardly boiling a little.

"I'm sorry about this, Quistis. Thank you for your help."

Of course he could be polite now. He'd just gotten his way, hadn't he? She felt a flash of resentment. _Damn it, Squall. I knew your leaving for Esthar was a BIG mistake. _She smiled a little tightly at Cid, and then, with a firm grip on her emotions, stormed out of the office to prepare for class.

__

One month later…

"Good morning, class." Quistis greeted as she stepped into the classroom, a stack of test papers in her arms.

"All right, turn off your computers. You're having a test today."

A collective chorus of groans came from the students. _Okay, three…two…one…the bargaining starts now. _

Bingo. "Instructor, we've had so much work to do last night, there was no time to revise!"

"An open book test!"

Quistis was used to this. What really got her wondering was why these students bothered to bargain in the first place, when they were going to do the test anyway.

__

For fun, I suppose. It's sort of become like a tradition. 

She clapped her hands, and the class quieted. "You know my negotiations, class. Open book test today, or no test at all is fine with me. I've given you ample warning, so be prepared for another test next week. Add another three chapters."

There was the usual uproar that followed her words. In well-concealed amusement she waited the customary five minutes, then spoke again.

"So?"

As usual, the class agreed to have the test that day.

As the students were struggling with their tests, Quistis herself was engrossed in SeeD documents. 

__

What kind of legal rubbish is this? Why can't Cid settle it himself? She growled inaudibly as she signed her name with a flourish. Using her intercom, she paged for Aaron, the young SeeD graduate whom Cid had assigned to be her aide.

"Yes, instructor?" At the young man's entrance, the class looked up from their tests with great curiosity.

"Aaron, please pass these on to Cid. If you don't mind, sort them out for me before you do so. If the Headmaster has anything else for me, see me after class and I'll collect them from you."

"Yes, Instructor Trepe." Aaron was a former Trepie, and he probably would have eaten her shoes if she'd told him to. _Couldn't Cid at least have sent me someone with more than air in his head? _Oh, well. It couldn't be helped.

Meanwhile, the class was staring at Aaron with a mixture of jealousy, envy and admiration on their faces.

__

Dear Hyne. "Okay, class, back to work. I want those tests by the end of the lesson."

It must be Squall's absence, Quistis decided, as she headed back to her quarters after another long, exhausting day. She was feeling grouchier than usual, and it wasn't getting better with time. If anything, it was getting worse.

The nights were no better. Occasionally she'd have that dream, of their last night together before he'd left for Esthar. It seemed so real that she'd really believe it, believe that he had returned to her, only to wake from dream to nightmare.

For it was a nightmare she was living now. Her body felt leaden and heavy, and she was often nauseous. Food had lost all its appeal to her. Rather, just thinking of food caused her stomach to churn even more.

There was nothing physically wrong with her. She knew what the problem was. Squall.

It was the workload that kept her going. In front of her students, in front of Cid, she was obliged to put on a normal appearance and act as if nothing was wrong. Of course, there were whispered rumors of her relationship with Squall, and every Trepie was torn between admiration and jealousy when it came to the handsome commander. 

When such questions arose, she'd smile teasingly, but never reply. And inside, try to control the tightening of her chest.

__

A hot shower, then I'll go to bed. She didn't feel up to anything else tonight.

The hot water ran over her naked body, soothing her muscles, if not her confused feelings. She curled up into a ball on the floor, allowing the water to hit her with full force. Just then someone knocked loudly on her door.

__

Who can that be? Just leave me alone. She made an attempt to ignore the sound, but whoever it was was persistent. Very persistent.

"Oh, all RIGHT!" she snapped, as she turned off the hot water and threw on a robe, stalking to the door. "I don't care who it is, what position they hold, but I'm positively going to kill them – " she yanked open the door. "Ah, good evening Aaron."

There was a startled look on the young man's face. Evidently he'd caught the last few words of her sentence before she'd opened the door.

"Ah, g-good evening," he stuttered a little, an envelope clutched in his hand. "Headmaster said to give this to you. He said you'd be wanting it immediately."

"What?" she took it from him, a questioning look in her eyes. "Squall!" she recognized the handwriting at once.

Unconsciously she had stepped back into the room, and Aaron had advanced. Now, as she put the letter on her desk, he came up behind her and took her arm. "Instructor…"

"Yes?" she turned around absently.

Aaron pulled her into his arms for a tight hug, and pressed his lips against hers. "What in Hyne? Aaron… stop it..."

He continued kissing her.

"Get AWAY from me!" she pushed with all her strength, and his eyes widened in shock as he reeled back. 

Both stood panting, facing each other.

"Out." She willed her voice to be steady.

"Why do you care for that cold fish of a commander anyway? I could give you much more than he ever could."

"Squall? You wouldn't understand." Why did she bother talking to him? To reassure herself of Squall's love?

"No, I don't." 

"I didn't ask you to. Get out."

"I – "

"OUT!" she raised her voice to a shout, and Aaron, more out of shock than anything else, obeyed.

__

Damn. I forgot to kill him. Okay, that was a lame remark. But she needed to get her mind off the events that had just occurred…

She slammed the door, locked it, then threw herself onto the bed. _Joy. Now my fellow SeeDs have started harassing me. Isn't there some repellent I can use that keeps uninvited male hands away? _

Oh, yeah. In the excitement she had almost forgotten Squall's letter. She reached for it, slit it open and shook out the contents.

A piece of paper fluttered out, and something hard fell out onto her leg. Ouch.

She picked up the paper first.

__

Angel,

Hope you're doing fine back at Balamb. There's nothing much for me to do here, just endless infiltration and laying low. Don't worry, I'm taking care of myself, and I'm eating properly.

I was in the shopping mall one day and I saw this…I've got half of it, and the other half is for you to hold till I get back.

Love you,

Squall.

Curiously Quistis picked up the fallen object. It was a small pendant, half a heart to be precise, crafted out of a delicate pink shell. Etched on the shell were Squall's initials.

Tears burned behind her eyelids, as she rummaged around in her drawer. Finally she found what she was looking for, a plain, simple black cord. She slipped the pendant onto the cord and fastened it around her neck, which had felt bare since the day she'd given her necklace to Squall.

For the first time since Squall had left, she didn't feel quite so moody anymore.

"Perhaps you know that when you have graduated, you'll be harnessing the power of Guardian Forces." Quistis addressed the class as she paced at the front of the room.

"You'll be relying heavily on them, especially to defeat tougher enemies."

"One misconception is that GFs like Siren, Carbuncle, and Cerberus, because they deal little or no damage at all, are useless GFs."

The class flipped their handbooks to the GFs she'd mentioned.

"Right now, you cadets are still inexperienced and it is not safe for you to summon GFs as of yet. If you are not strong enough, an attempt to summon the GF will cause serious damage to your mind."

"Cerberus's move casts the Triple and Double spells…" The class was getting fuzzy. She shook her head and tried to focus. "On your party. These spells…" The world was tilting precariously now. Not just her head, but her stomach too. She gripped the desk for support and stood swaying. She was relying completely on her self-control to remain standing. 

The last thing she heard was a loud cry of "Instructor Trepe!" before she hit the ground.

__

Ohhh. Quistis grimaced as the white light seared her eyes. She quickly shut them again.

"You're awake." A familiar voice. Oh, yes. Doctor Kadowaki. 

She sensed a shadow falling over her, and the doctor's face swam into focus as she opened her eyes.

"What happened?" She struggled to sit up.

"Apparently you lost consciousness in class." The doctor came to look closely at her. "Any idea why?"

"No. I've just not been feeling well, that's all."

"Hm." Doctor Kadowaki studied her face.

"It's probably just the heat," she lied. 

"Nausea, vomiting?"

"No vomiting. Dizzy spells, and a constant tired feeling."

Doctor Kadowaki peered closer. "Mind if I ask a personal question?"

Quistis shrugged. "Go ahead."

"Your last period?"

"Huh?"

"Your period. Late?"

"Uh, yeah. Not here yet."

"I'll like to do a few tests…"

After those 'tests', Doctor Kadowaki sat facing Quistis, her face grave.

"Instructor, I'll need you to be truthful with me."

"Sure."

"Have you been sexually active recently?"

"Wha-?" Quistis's voice faltered as she stared at the doctor in horror.

"Have you had intercourse lately?"

"I – I…"

"You're pregnant." The words hit her like a hammer. _No. It can't be! _ She sat still as stone as her world crashed and splintered around her.

"Have you decided what to do yet?" it was two days later, and she was back in the infirmary.

"Yes." Her voice was firm. "I can't keep it."

"And?"

"I want an abortion." Her voice was flat, emotionless.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm a SeeD. I don't have time for a baby." Her shoulders trembled slightly.

Kadowaki kept quiet for a while. "If you'll like, I can arrange it so that the Headmaster will never know. You can take a couple weeks' medical leave, and I'll clear it off your record."

"All… all right. Thanks."

  
"But Quistis?"

"Yes?"

"Have you told the father yet?"

"No." 

"You should, you know."

"I will." _maybe next millennium. _

And so it'd been done quietly, and after two weeks Quistis was ready to take up her duties again. To everyone else, she was just as she had been before she'd been "ill".

No one ever saw the tears that soaked her pillow at night. Neither did anyone know of the pain that she harbored deep in her heart.

-Owari-

Author's note: So how was it? Should I continue? Comments please!


End file.
